Thursday, June 18, 2009

Bonjour from Paris!

We arrived in Paris at 9:30 a.m. (2:30 a.m.) Memphis time. We were tired but excited. Most travelers got very little sleep on the 8 hour flight. The weather is cool, but pleasant, cloudy, but no rain. We were able to get into our rooms as soon as we arrived at the Mercure Suffren Hotel at the foot of the Eiffel Tower. We rested for a few minutes and hit the streets with Dean Maness leading the way. We were all exhausted but knew we had to keep going until an early but somewhat regular bedtime. It is now 9:00 p.m. Paris time and we are all headed for bed. We tried to keep everyone outside today in the fresh air. We visited Notre Dame, St. Severin, the Latin Quarter, the Marais on the Right Bank, the site of the Bastille, rode several subways, and shopped a little.

Tomorrow we will visit Gare Saint- Lazare to purchase tickets for our day trip to Giverny and to sketch this train station made famous by Monet, who painted 12 paintings of this glass roofed train shed. ( Later in the day we will view one of these paintings at the Museé D'Orsay.)From the train station we will begin a walking tour of sites in the area where many of the artists lived and worked. This will be the beginning of the day. I will report tomorrow night the events of the rest of the day. Bon soir!

9 comments:

Wow! Ya'll did so much with jet lag! I don't think I could have kept up! Have fun tomorrow (Mom- The pictures open too little. I can't get them to open big enough to see everybody. Can you fix that? :-)

Wow #2! What a busy day, it's great to see the pics, makes me really happy, it looks beautiful! Thanks Janis for the blog, this is a great way to stay connected. Andrea, xoxos to you, missing you like crazy, but so happy for you- your home away from home is beautiful. Dad, Andrew, and Ariann send their love (Shah too). Wishing everyone a great day tomorrow and a really nice foot bath tomorrow night! :)

So much to see, so much to do, and all on the first day! Thanks for keeping us updated and connected, it's great to see pictures. We love you Emily! Sarah is telling everyone that you are in France and checks the calendar daily for your return date.

Thank goodness for bread, pastry and cheese shops for Danielle !!!!!!! Sorry you're haveing to deal with the rain, but its got to better that the "oven" temps we have at home. Glad you were able to fo to Versailles. Especially, since Carleigh chose to shop last year with Caylee and didn't see Versailles. Hope the gardens were in full bloom. Love you and fun to all.... Julie and Bill

Thanks for the Father's Day wish. The girls still look very happy. I hate to miss your trip updates, but I am leaving tomorrow AM to fish a remote river in Alaska for 8 days and there's no internet. Have a great, great time and I'll try to keep up with Julie by phone. Love you Carleigh and keep each other safe and having fun.

Hello from the 112 heat index of Memphis! I am fighting the "green green envy disease" and so wish I were there with you all. Your pics are great and the blogs are wonderful. Special hello to Judy, too. All I know is iSummit, iSummit, iSummit!!!!See you soon. The Moodster

La Giraudière

Our "home away from home" in France

Lasting Impressions - A Painting Adventure

This painting adventure is open to St. Agnes Upper School art students with a love for oil painting and the outdoors. We will travel to France and spend five days in Paris and the surrounding area. We will visit museums, walk in the footsteps of the French Impressionists, tour Versailles, and travel by train for a day visit to Rouen and Giverny, the home and gardens of Claude Monet.

On the sixth day of our trip we will board a train and travel to Angers in the Loire Valley, the chateau region of France. For nine days we will stay in the French countryside at La Giraudière where we will paint en plein air and visit surrounding places of interest which include medieval castles, a chocolate factory, salt fields, and the longest sand beach in Europe at La Baule.

We will end our wonderful adventure back in Paris for one more night with a visit to the Eiffel Tower.

About Me

I am a full-time high school art teacher and artist in Tennessee. I have the perfect job. I love being an artist, and I love sharing my passion with budding young artists. These young ladies teach and inspire me every day and help me to be more creative and encourage me to pursue my dreams.